Earlier this year, Bell Shakespeare invited Australian teachers to take part in a National Teacher Survey to get direct feedback from teachers on our education programs, how we can best meet their needs, and to best understand how we are perceived in the marketplace and our unique value. Almost 400 teachers participated in the survey, representing all states and territories, double the number of participants in our previous national survey.
The teachers who completed the survey were from:
- NSW – 49.85%
- VIC – 19.56%
- QLD – 12.12%
- WA – 5.51%
- SA – 4.13%
- TAS – 4.13%
- ACT – 3.58%
- NT – 1.10%
The location of the schools represented were:
- Metropolitan – 58.40%
- Regional – 38.84%
- Remote – 2.75%
Teachers said they taught students who are, or identify as:
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander – 85.95%
- Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) – 76.4%
- From refugee/migrant backgrounds – 66.29%
- Living with disability – 83.71%
Teachers reported that the biggest challenges currently faced in their schools are (in order):
- Teacher shortages – 54.62%
- Student behavioural and/or attention challenges – 51.54%
- Budgetary resitrictions – 50.14%
- Students living with trauma and/or mental health challenges – 45.10%
- Limited or no access to live performance/theatre – 43.42%
- Low literacy – 42.30%
- Low perceived value of the arts by school community – 35.57%
- Low socioeconomic status of the school – 34.17%
- High turnover of teachers – 24.09%
- New teachers with limited experience – 23.25%
- Ongoing impact of COVID –19 21.01%
- Student numbers increasing – 19.61%
- Geographic isolation – 16.53%
- Low perceived value of education and learning – 16.25%
- Low levels of student attendance – 14.57%
- Limited or no access to professional development – 12.32%
- Student numbers decreasing – 10.08%
- School/community affected by environmental disasters – 6.44%
In regards to Shakespeare plays taught in schools, by far the most popular for study in schools were:
- Macbeth – 73.83% of responders
- Romeo and Juliet – 73.83% of responders
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream – 43.53% of responders
The time of year that Shakespeare is being taught in schools was reported as:
- Term 1 – 36%
- Term 2 – 57%
- Term 3 – 72%
- Term 4 – 33%
It was pleasing to see that a return to face-to-face education programs implemented post-pandemic with the following responses to school policy on incursions/excursions:
- 91% of schools allow incursions
- 90% of schools allow excursions
- 17% of schools are reducing excursion activity
- 7% of schools are limiting incursion activity